James Arthur is releasing his new album, “It’ll All Make Sense In The End”, on Nov. 5. He is an English singer and songwriter who started singing at the age of fifteen, and he rose to fame right after he won the ninth season of the X Factor in 2012. Arthur gained lots of popularity after the release of his hit singles “Say You Won’t Let Go” and “Impossible.” Although he was involved with some controversies when he released his debut studio album, he is now considered one of the most profound singers of his generation and has many fans who are fond of his ravishing voice and music.
Since only a few of the tracks on his upcoming album have been released, I will be reviewing the four songs currently out, that will be on the full album list in November. To elaborate more on a few of these tracks, Arthur has poured his heart and soul into them through writing about the struggles he faced during the pandemic, including his health issues, dealing with his reflection period and the beautiful fact that he has become a father to his new little baby girl.
So far my favorite song from the five tracks that he has released is “September” because it is a very sincere and beautifully written song. What I also love about “September” is that it has Arthur’s emotional tone, a style that he adds to every song. It reminded me of his previous song, “Say You Won’t Let Go.” I’m not sure if it is the meaningful lyrics or emotional music (maybe both), but I get goosebumps whenever I listen to either one of those two songs. If you are one of the people who enjoyed the beautiful melody and deep meaning in “Say You Won’t Let Go,” then you should definitely check this song out.
Another song that stood out to me is “Emily.” It’s not just the beautiful lyrics, but the fact that Arthur wrote and dedicated this song to his newborn baby girl, Emily. One of the lyrics in his song was “Now that we are a family it’s only you, your mum, and me.” This line really touched my heart because it conveyed to me Arthur’s emotions as he realizes that there is a new member of their family and the importance of the father and daughter relationship.
The third track that he released from his upcoming album is “Medicine.” It is another emotional, romantic-like song through which Arthur expresses his struggles, how his partner stood by him despite all of the difficulties he is facing and how she was like the remedy or “Medicine” to his pain. I personally have been listening to it while getting my school work done.
One of the last tracks is “Avalanche.” This song seems like it is an escape for Arthur. He seemed to write his own feelings during the difficult time he went through into the lyrics and turned it into a special song. I believe this song is for people suffering from suicidal thoughts and severe depression. It is like a kind of message comforting people who feel similarly, telling them to not be ashamed to talk about it and know that they are not alone with such feelings. The message that Arthur wanted to send through some tracks in his upcoming album was a representation of his reality and what he hoped to become one day. For example, one of his lyrics in “Avalanche” was “I feel the world is collapsing down.” I believe that’s what he felt when struggling with health issues and pandemic last year.
This is Arthur’s fourth studio album and there will be 14 tracks. This is not necessarily long, as previous albums included seventeen tracks. My only concern was that some of the songs that were already released sounded similar to previous songs in his past albums. For example, from the moment I heard “September” on my friend’s phone, I was able to recognize that this is an Arthur song. For a second I even wondered if it was another version of one of his previous songs, specifically “Say You Won’t Let Go.” I can’t give my full opinion on this because the whole album has not been released yet, although from the five tracks that I heard so far that was my only problem; Arthur has not changed his style even a bit.
Fortunately, that is not always a bad thing. An artist must always add his own type of music to every song he or she makes. In a way, the artist will have their own mark and style in every song they release, especially considering that Arthur wanted to reference some lyrics from his old songs to his new song, “September.” Although I thought it was a bit repetitive and sounded similar, I do believe that this is the best genre and style for Arthur. The truth is that this is what fits his rich and resonant sound the most, and in my opinion, that is why we barely ever see him in any different genre.
In essence Arthur’s music has always been my comfort. I need it whether I am down and want to make myself feel better or I am happy and want to feel extra joyful. Choosing to talk about only specific songs was not easy for me because I felt like each one expressed a specific feeling and each track would relate or resonate with each person differently. This album really took me, in a way, to a different place, a better place. This is not the first time that Arthur’s music and voice has had this kind of effect on me, but this album felt like the most sincere one and I recommend everyone to listen to it.
The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of The Torch.
